Karen Strickler Dean

I loved this book when I was ten years old in the 1980s. I have re-read it and its two sequels since. I have to say that I never even had a formal ballet lesson (I taught myself the five oybasic positions from the set of 1960 encyclopedias we had in our home), but I loved to read ballet stories (and still love such movies.) As a child, my only criticism was, and remains, was that Maggie was constantly told by her father that she should learn to type in case the dancing career didn't happen for her. Part of me as a young girl, who was told I could do anything I set my mind to, disliked that her father kept telling her this, and that apparently besides dancing, her other choice was to become a secretary. That was ridiculous. I remember wondering why Maggie couldn't become a choreographer, or something else related to dancing if she didn't become a professional dancer. I remember wondering why she couldn't go into some area of science, like her engineering major boyfriend. Why her engineering boyfriend was so against her dancing? I was hoping to understand it all more as I got older, but really, i have never really understood. I thought she just ought to have it all, without all of the conflicts of other peoples' opinions! Otherwise I really love this book and the sequels.… (mer)